HIG Capital has established Highground Living, a Berlin-headquartered residential platform targeting €1 billion in German housing assets, the firm announced July 16. The platform consolidates existing HIG investments and operations in the Berlin area while adding a newly acquired €450 million residential portfolio spanning Leipzig and Dresden.
Highground pairs institutional ownership with a local operating platform, giving HIG Capital a scalable vehicle to manage and grow residential assets across what the firm views as Germany’s strongest urban markets. The platform intends to grow both its portfolio and operational footprint over time.
The move builds on HIG Capital’s existing German residential presence. The firm previously acquired a controlling stake in The Grounds Real Estate Development AG, a Berlin-focused developer with standing assets, development projects, and a substantial land bank in the greater Berlin area.
HIG Realty’s Thesis on the German Housing Market
Germany’s residential market draws attention from institutional investors for a consistent set of reasons: the country is one of Europe’s largest housing markets by volume, new supply has remained persistently constrained in major cities, and underlying demand from population growth and urbanization has held firm. HIG Capital’s realty team sees those conditions as a durable backdrop for capital deployment.
Riccardo Dallolio, Managing Director and Head of H.I.G. Realty Europe, described Germany as a high-conviction market for the firm’s European residential strategy. “Highground marks an important milestone for H.I.G. Realty’s European residential strategy,” Dallolio said. “We have identified German residential as one of our high-conviction markets and have built a scalable platform to capitalize on the current market opportunity.”
Stelios Theodosiou, Managing Director at H.I.G. Realty in Europe, framed Highground’s value around active management rather than passive ownership. “Highground provides an institutional operating platform capable of creating long-term value through active asset management and disciplined portfolio growth,” Theodosiou said. “We look forward to supporting the management team as the business grows across Germany’s residential market.”
Highground Among HIG Capital’s Early Moves Under CEO Brian Schwartz
Highground is one of several transactions HIG Capital has announced since Brian Schwartz took over as chief executive officer in April. Schwartz became the firm’s first CEO since co-founders Sami Mnaymneh and Tony Tamer launched it in Miami in 1993, with Mnaymneh stepping into an executive chairman role he shares with Tamer. Both founders retained their seats on the firm’s investment committees.
Schwartz joined HIG Capital in 1994 and spent more than six years as co-president before the appointment. Doug Berman, who led the firm’s U.S. private equity business, was promoted to co-president alongside Rick Rosen as part of the same transition.
HIG Capital’s real estate strategy sits alongside private equity, credit, and infrastructure under a platform now managing $75 billion. Activity on the realty side has been consistent: in addition to Highground, the firm has grown its Central London living platform past £1 billion in gross development value and established Boxengo, an Italian self-storage platform, over the past year. HIG Capital was co-founded by Sami Mnaymneh, who serves as Founder and Executive Chairman, and Tony Tamer, who also serves as Founder and Executive Chairman.
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